Three people were killed and five injured in a shooting at a biker rally in Red River, New Mexico, on Saturday.
Neither the victims nor the shooters were local residents and were among bikers who were visiting for the rally over the long weekend holiday leading into Memorial Day, the Red River mayor, Linda Calhoun, told the Guardian on Sunday.
She had said in an earlier interview on Sunday morning that the shooting was gang-related, and that the shooters have all been taken into custody.
She wasn’t able to confirm how many shooters were involved. The Guardian has reached out to the rally organizers for further details.
“This was a very targeted event,” she said, adding: “And no law enforcement or residents were injured.”
The shooting took place between two retail stores, and it was not business-related.
Calhoun said there was no threat to the wider public.
The shooting took place at the 41st annual Red River Memorial Motorcycle Rally, an event which brings in thousands of vendors and bikers for the long weekend. About 20,000 bikers were attending this year’s rally.
Motorcyclists come in particularly from the nearby states of Texas, Colorado, Oklahoma, as well as other parts of New Mexico and further afield.
“We’re a very, very small town and host a big event,” Calhoun said, adding that the police have suggested local businesses shut down while the investigation is ongoing.
“It’s a huge impact to our business community, businesses were having record days on Friday and Saturday,” she said, adding that “it’s a huge hit to our economy”.
Victims were taken to two hospitals in nearby towns, and to one in Denver, Colorado, which were all secured by the police.
The long weekend also saw a spate of gun violence in Chicago, where eight people died across the city among 34 victims who were shot between Friday evening through Sunday morning. In Philadelphia, two people were killed in separate shootings early Saturday morning. A toddler was shot to death inside an apartment in Pompano Beach, Florida, on Saturday afternoon.
